Into The Light Another Life Changed
by Dr. Kelly's Gal
Summary: Mike has another story to share! Is there another adoption on the horizon for the Stoker family? Tune in and find out! R/R plz. Thanks!
1. Chapter 1

"**Into The Light Another Life Changed"**

**By: Jimi James Haze**

(Mike has another story to share. The time line here would be when Cody was nine and Luka was about two.

As usual, all things Emergency! do not belong to me. My made up characters do however and they are not to be used without my permission.)

Here I am, writing another story. I guess since Cody has become a member of our family, he has brought it out in me. This story centers around Cody and his incredible desire to bring his best buddy at New Horizons home to stay. It was quite a journey so I'll start at the beginning where most stories begin!

Shortly after Luka was born and Cody got adjusted to her being here, he was outside one day with Henry sitting under the tree house tree and looked to be deep in thought. I went out and spoke gently to him and asked him what he was thinking about. He told he was thinking about his closest buddy Chad at New Horizons.

He went on further to say how much he really missed him. I told him we could go see him and he said he didn't want to just visit him. He wanted for Chad to become a member of our family. I told him that was quite a proposition and asked him what brought that on. He told me he wanted Chad to have "the awesome family that he had." I told him I would have to talk it over with his mother and his brothers to see how they felt.

He wanted to know what would happen if anyone said no and I told if anyone objected, we couldn't do it because I didn't want Chad in a house where someone didn't want him. Cody asked if we could ask now and I told him I didn't object so we went inside and I told Julie and the boys Cody had something on his mind.

We all gathered in the Family Room minus Luka who was taking a nap and everyone wanted to know what was on Cody's mind. Cody then shared what he wanted. Julie asked him how long he was thinking about that and he said "For a while." Since we didn't know Chad, we had questions. Cody told us he was the same age, blind like he was, pretty smart and he didn't have a family.

Julie asked Bret and Stevey how they felt to have another member of the family and both of them said they were fine with it. Bret even volunteered to share his room with Chad. Cody was thrilled and I told him not so fast. Julie and I had to discuss it in more detail and once we did, we'd let him know what direction we were going to take.

He was OK with it and of course Bret and Stevey had to lobby on behalf of their brother. It amazed us to that day that they will still do that.

Later that night, after bedtime prayers, Julie and I put Luka down for the night and went to our bedroom to retire. We sat up for a while discussing Chad. His being blind didn't bother us. What did bother us was that really didn't know him or much about him. We both decided that we would check in with our dear friend Sharon at New Horizons, since we were still certified to foster.

At least wise that way, she would no doubt give us a good starting point and the things we need to do to possibly bring Chad home with us. We were nervous about it but we remembered how nervous we were when we brought Cody home and it turned out as fantastic as anyone could have ever wanted it to. So we hoped this would too.

So the Stoker family was off on another adventure. Where would it take us? Would we have another adopted son? We would see.

To Be Continued


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The next morning was a day off so once the boys were off to school and the babysitter came to keep an eye on Luka, we headed for New Horizons. Once we got there, we said a prayer asking for things to work out as He would see fit.

As luck would have it, Sharon had time to talk to us. As usual, she was really happy to see us. After we got settled in her office with some good, hot coffee, Sharon asked what brought us there. We told her a young man named Chad who was Cody's roommate and someone who Cody was, for lack of better words, terribly homesick for. He wanted Chad to become a part of our family problem was we didn't know anything about him. We were still able to foster but we needed to know more before we made that determination.

Sharon was surprised but happy. She said Chad's background was vastly different from Cody's. He was born blind to very loving parents. Sadly, his parents were killed in a horrible traffic accident involving a tanker truck. Chad was two at the time and none of the family members wanted to take a two year old with blindness so he ended up a ward of the state and was placed at New Horizons.

According to Sharon, Chad was bright, engaging and easy to get along with. He and Cody were great roommates and got along very well. They loved "sword fighting" with their canes and did it often. She said she swore "on guard!" were their two favorite words in the English language! She said they never hurt each other once when playing that way and she marveled how they managed not to.

But on the downside, he still wet the bed, was on medication for mood swings and had periodic crying spells. Sharon said she felt strongly that if Chad had a family, much like Cody in time, those problems would "work themselves out." I asked Julie how she felt and she said "Well Cody had a lot of issues too and we were able to work through them. All we can do is try."

I thought we were getting in over our heads but thought we did have one advantage we didn't have with Cody. Chad knew at least one member of the family well. So that more than likely would work to our advantage.

We told Sharon we would give it a shot but we weren't making any promises with this one. She said there never were any guarantees and she could live with that. She asked if we wanted to meet Chad and we said we did.

So she took us over to the campus school and asked to see Chad and we walked to a conference room down the hall. Once we got inside, Sharon told Chad that there was a family interested in him.

He was surprised to say the least and said "Wow!" and then "Who?" and Sharon officially introduced us to Chad Alan Strayer. He immediately knew who we were; he said "You're Cody's parents aren't you?" and we told him we were and that Cody really missed living with him. Chad answered that quickly with a "me too."

We told him we wanted to get to know him first and that included spending time with us. His face lit up and asked Sharon when we could and Sharon said it would take a little time to get it arranged and once we got it all worked out, we'd let him know.

Chad asked us if he could tell us something and we said of course. He said Cody really loved us and talked about us all the time. We were touched; we told Chad we felt very much the same about Cody and we were so happy he was a member of our family.

Julie asked Chad a question, one that never entered my mind. She asked how he felt about being around small children because we had a two year old at home. He thought about it for a minute and he said he didn't honestly know. She took it one step further and asked him if he ever lost his temper if he would hit her or any other member of the family with his cane and he said "No way. Mrs. Shumer would be very upset with me if I ever did that. She's our teacher and she said being mean and rude isn't nice."

I had to agree with him and added "I'm really happy you understand that. Good for you. Do you have any questions for us?" and Chad said "Will your big dogs like me?" and I told him more than likely. Then his mood got quite serious and he said "I wet the bed. Is that bad?" and I told him it wasn't; some kids do but eventually they outgrow it. Julie gave him the same reassurance she gave Cody and he seemed relieved.

A little bit later, Sharon, Julie and I walked our potential foster child back to his classroom. He thanked us for coming to talk with him and we promised we would stay in touch with him. Once we had everything all put together, he would see much more of us. He did have one more question to ask us that was more or less designed to put his mind at ease. He asked us if he was going to still be allowed to attend the same school and we assured him he would. That seemed to really relieve him.

Then the funniest thing happened. When Chad went back into the classroom, Cody was turned in our direction and for some strange reason we waved at him! Of course, he didn't wave back and I asked Julie why he wasn't waving back and as soon as I asked that question it dawned on me Cody couldn't see us!

Oh man, I must have turned one hundred shades of red! Sharon was chuckling and so was Julie. Finally I had to join in. I told Sharon Cody does so well that I sometimes forget he's blind and she said she understood completely. I told her I was glad she did.

Once we got back to Sharon's office, she asked us how we felt. I was honest with her and told her I had my doubts but was willing to give it a shot. Sharon assured us the kind of people we were, we couldn't do anything but make his life better.

We thanked her for her vote of confidence and told her we'd wait to hear from her and we'd go from there. She agreed and told us she'd be in touch. We thanked her then headed to the truck.

I asked Julie if we were doing the right thing and she asked me why I had so many doubts and I told her more than likely it was because we didn't know him. She said we didn't know Cody either in the beginning. I told her while that was true, I felt an instant connection to Cody where I didn't with Chad which concerned me.

Julie said to give it time and she felt sure everything would fall into place. God, I hoped she was right. Time would certainly let us know if Julie was right.

To Be Continued


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Two weeks later, Sharon contacted us and she suggested mentoring at first like we did with Cody and I personally felt much more comfortable with that idea. Ease into it. I was so anxious and I couldn't put my finger on exactly why I was feeling that way. Julie said she thought because it was a whole new adventure and that made sense.

So, for the first visit, Julie urged me to go alone so that I could find out if I could make a connection with Chad. I thought it was a reasonable suggestion so off I went to see Chad alone. Before I got out of the truck and after arriving there, I asked God to lead in this visit.

I went inside and the receptionist recognized me and greeted me warmly and told me they were expecting me. She took me back to see Chad who was sitting at a table doing what I assumed was his homework in Braille. I spoke to him gently and he said "Hi Mr. Stoker" happily. I told him I'd rather him call me Mike and he said "No sir. Mrs. Schumer told us we must respect those older than we are."

I had to smile and said "Mrs. Shumer is very wise. It is very hard to argue with advice as good as that is." I asked him if he was doing his homework and he said he was. Shannon, his companion, greeted me warmly and asked about Cody. Before I could answer, Chad said "We both got an A on our spelling papers today" and I gave him warm praise. Shannon followed suit.

I told him Cody loved spelling and Chad said they were going to have a spelling bee at the end of the month and the winner would get a trophy. "Far out" was my response. I told him I once shared a trophy with my coworkers at the Station House and he had to ask me how we got it so I went ahead and told him.

I told him it was for the best comedy act at a Fireman's Picnic one year. We basically made total fools of ourselves trying to sing an old style of singing called vaudeville type music acappella, which meant without any music. We were dressed in goofy outfits and all. He asked me why I sounded so embarrassed and I told him because it was embarrassing! I also told him he was very perceptive and he said "Thank you Sir." He reminded me so much of Cody before we were able to break the walls down.

I wanted to really get to know him but I knew it couldn't happen in one visit. I asked him what his favorite things to do were and he said he loved playing in water, swimming, playing tag, taking care of his three pet turtles, all sorts of things. I asked him I could see his turtles and he said "Sure!" and told me to follow him, which I did. He was as masterful as Cody in getting around and knowing where he was going.

Once we got to his room, sure enough, there were two different aquariums on a stand with a total of three different turtles in them! Of course, I had to ask him what their names were and I was highly amused at what he named them. Gary Granite, Bobby Darrock and Beau Brummelstone. I told Chad I dug the Flintstones too and he couldn't believe someone "as old as me" liked the Flintstones! Ahh yes. His room rang with laughter from both of us.

I asked him how he could tell the difference between his three friends and he said "Well on the top corners of the glass, there is a label in Braille and it has their name or names on it. Plus when I hold them, they all feel different." Chad blew me away with that and my anxiety turned to respect for him and his special abilities. All I could say was "Wow!" He asked me if I wanted to hold one of them and I said "Sure. I haven't handled a turtle since I was young so you'll have to show me how."

He replied "That's easy. Just watch me and you do the same." So that is exactly what I did. As I watched him scoop one of them out with amazing precision, I wondered if Julie would tolerate Beau, Bobby and Gary in the boy's room. I could see Bret and Stevey treating them as their own and pitching in to keep their glass homes clean.

Chad slowly walked over to me and said "Bobby, meet Mr. Stoker" and once I told him it was safe to hand him to me, he did and I held Bobby the same way. "Hello Mr. Darrock, how are you doing today?" and a sweet little boy's laughter was heard once again. "Well" I explained, "You introduced me as Mr. Stoker so I thought since you introduced me as Mister I would address him the same way."

Chad gave me a joyful smile and said "You're silly you know that?" and I told him "Seems to me I've been told that before" with a chuckle. I told him I have always been interested in turtles and that they were a really neat creature. He asked me what my favorite part of the turtle was and I told him without question the shell. It really amazed me how they went into and came out of their shells.

I told him Bobby was pretty tame and he said Gary was too. Beau wasn't; he liked to fight so that was why he lived alone. I gave Bobby back to him and he headed straight for his aquarium and lovingly put him back inside and replaced the cover.

I told Chad I had to leave but I really enjoyed the time I spent with him and Mr. Darrock. He asked when I'd be back and I told him with work and all probably about two days and he was fine with that and thanked me for coming to see him. Quite suddenly, I noticed his demeanor changed and I asked him what was bothering him.

He said he wanted to ask me something but was afraid I would say no. Taking a huge chance, I told him "But there's a chance I might say yes." My voice was as comforting and assuring as humanly possible for I wanted to know what was ailing him. His eyes were flitting about fifty miles per hour. I gently took his hand and said "Please ask me what you wanted to. I promise you it won't make me the least bit mad. Honest it won't."

He said with a timid voice "You really don't know me all that well. But I feel like I know you. Would you…would you…would you mind if I asked you to…to…to hug me?" and I responded immediately and said "I wouldn't mind in the least" and I walked over to him, squatted down to his level and hugged him affectionately. And he didn't hesitate to return it either.

I truly believe it was at that moment that we bonded with each other. Suddenly, all my anxieties vanished. Julie was right again with her suggestion that I come alone. I told Chad as I was easing out of the embrace that I thought everything was going to be OK. I told him to sleep well and I'd see him in a couple of days. I also made it a point to say goodbye to Bobby, Beau and Gary.

With that, I turned around and left his room. Unbeknown to me, Sharon was still in the building and more than likely seen what took place because she said she wanted to talk to me in her office. So, off we went to our destination and she closed her office door and offered me some coffee. I gladly accepted it and I wanted to tell her Chad asked me to hug him but decided against it.

Sharon started out by giving me quite a compliment. She said she wished that we could adopt all their children! I thanked her for the compliment and told her sometimes I am even amazed at how I connect with handicapped kids because before Cody, I just couldn't imagine myself doing such a thing. She said she would have never known because she thought it was something that came naturally.

She also said she was observing Chad and I as we interacted together. I asked her how he takes care of his turtles and she told me he has Shannon to help him. She has to do the more difficult visual stuff but he does a very good job in seeing to feeding and watering them and he even lets them wander around his room on the floor. He keeps track of them with the cane.

Of course, it is one at a time with the door closed. They were an amazing source of comfort and companionship for him, much like Henry was to Cody. I asked Sharon when he got them because I didn't recall seeing them before and she said shortly after Cody left. They were in the classroom at the school but Chad was so lonely he asked for them to be transferred to his room.

So they worked a few kinks out and the four of them have been living happily ever after ever since. I told Sharon I wasn't exactly sure Julie would allow them in the house because of the dogs and a very active two year old. We had plenty of time to figure it all out. She agreed and she said based on her observations she thinks Chad and I are a good fit. I told her my anxieties were gone the moment Chad asked me to hug him.

I felt pretty sure we bonded in that moment and she gladly agreed with me. I also told her that I thought he was going to be a good fit for the family because I could see Bret and Stevey taking to him right out of the gate. She agreed with that as well. I told her I needed to go and she thanked me for my time. I told her I'd be back in a few days and thanked her for the coffee.

With that, I headed out and back home feeling pretty content. And I found myself thanking God for Bobby, Beau and Gary. They truly played a turning point in the visit. And it just confirmed in my mind how He does work through people, places and things. Awesome!

**Beau Brummelstone, Bobby Darrock and Gary Granite do not belong to me. They are the property of the Flinstones.**

To Be Continued


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

I got home fairly late and it was after dark. Julie was concerned but knew where I was so she said she was assuming I was having a good time and all was going well. I told her it was a little awkward at first but the most unlikeliest of things broke the ice. She asked what it was and I told her about the three turtles named Bobby Darrock, Beau Brummelstone and Gary Granite. She smiled warmly and recognized the names right away, associating them with the Flintstones.

She then gave me a confused look and said "Mike he's blind. How can he take care of turtles?" and I told her pretty much the same way Cody took care of Henry. But he does have help for the more difficult visual things.

Julie said we'd talk later, at that point it was time to do our prayers with the boys. Luka was already sound asleep so I went up to her room and gently lowered the crib bars and gave her a sweet kiss on the cheek and put the crib bars back up quietly.

Then we headed for Stevey and Cody's room. Cody asked me what I thought of Chad and I told him he reminded me an awful lot of him and that I had great respect for his skills. Cody asked me if I met Bobby, Beau and Gary and I told him I held Bobby and Cody said "Cool!" Stevey then asked who the trio were and Cody told him they were turtles.

Stevey was immediately interested and said "Just think Mom! If Chad moves in, we'll have three pet turtles in addition to three pet dogs! How cool is that?" and Julie quickly answer "Not in my house." That reaction did not surprise me at all. Stevey said "How come?" and I answered "It's getting late. We'll deal with that if and when the time comes OK? Time for prayers." So the boys said their prayers and we tucked them in.

We then went to Bret's room and he said "Sounds like everything went pretty well" and I said "Yes it did. He's a pretty amazing kid. Reminds a lot of Cody and his unique abilities." Bret then said "Hey Mom, we can keep the turtles. I'll help with the visual stuff." I had to grin with pride when he said that. Julie once again said "Not in my house." I told Bret we had plenty of time to appeal it was time for prayers.

And while he was praying, Bret threw in this request: "Please Lord, if it is meant to be, please help Mom realize having pet turtles in the house really wouldn't be all that bad." She was less than impressed as Bret finished his prayer. We bid him goodnight and then headed to our bedroom.

Julie wanted to know all about the visit and I told her and she was pleased that things went so well. She was especially happy when I told her that I made a connection with him. I told her about my conversation with Sharon and she said she was a hoot for suggesting we adopt all those kids!

I told her I agreed but it was still quite a compliment nonetheless. She asked me how big the turtles were and I told her not big at all; two of them lived together in a thirty gallon aquarium comfortably. I told her they weren't tortoise size by any means.

I told her if I was to guess their shells might be as big as my hand. And Chad said they were pretty tame. He was very attached to them. I told her I thought it would be cruel to separate them. Julie said she understood that. I told her we had plenty of time to figure it all out.

We got into our night clothes and got into bed. I started chuckling and Julie asked me what was so comical and I told her I was thinking about Cody and Henry and then a visual of Chad and his turtles. Julie shot me a look and said trying to have her best sense of humor "Don't go there Mike."

I knew better to push any further because if I did, I'd be on the couch! So, with that, I gave her a kiss, told her I loved her and snuggled in for the night and fell sound asleep.

To Be Continued

**Bobby Darrock, Beau Brummelstone and Gary Granite do not belong to me. They belong to the Flinstones. **


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

The next day was a work day and the crew knew I was going to see Chad. After roll call, everyone wanted to know how it went. I told them really well; much better than I ever expected. Cap said he was "totally amazed" that we were thinking about fostering and possibly adopting another handicapped child. I told I was too because I never expected to be doing it a second time.

I told them about the turtles and Julie's reaction to them and Cap smiled and said "I can hear Stacy saying those exact words" and added a chuckle. I told them Bret and Stevey were already lobbying on the reptiles behalf. Marco said the boys were "such a trip" and I had to agree with him. Chet asked me if the turtles had names and I told him what they were and Roy said "He's all boy for sure."

We got our chores done and it was approaching noon. We were busy off and on and Cap took the cooking duties and we talked him into making Clam Chowder for supper. We didn't know what he had in mind for lunch. So I kept busy doing various miscellaneous things, eventually landing on the couch doing my typical reading and observing.

The phone rang and Cap told me it was Julie. So I took the call and she said she was a little worried about Cody. I asked her why and she said going into it, she might have been reading into something that wasn't there but she had a thought that Cody could react much the same way with Chad moving in as he did with the news of Luka's arrival.

I told her it was an interesting observation but I had some doubt about it because Cody requested for Chad to be a part of the family where with Luka it was totally unexpected. She agreed but still couldn't help but wonder. I told her there was only one way to find out and that was to talk it over with Cody and see. We got toned out in the middle of our conversation so away we went.

It was a roaring fire that consumed two well-known businesses and was a three alarm fire. It was a total loss and the only good thing about the whole situation is that everyone got out and no one was injured or killed. So it took a while to get everything out and keep it out!

We were pretty tired when we got back and Cap's Chowder got derailed so to speak. So because time was a consideration, we settled for some loaded pizzas for supper with salad and fruit salad for desert. We were all fine with that because we knew Cap too was tired.

The rest of the night was pretty quiet except for a phone call from Sharon. Chad wanted to say hello and she said she hoped it was OK and I told her it was fine and she thanked me and then put Chad on. We greeted each other and I asked him what was up and he said he missed me and wanted to make sure that I was safe.

I told him I was fine and that I was not going to permit him taking up worrying about me. He asked me why not because we were friends and I told him while that was true that we were friends, I wanted him to know that the job I did wasn't quite as dangerous as going into the mouth of the fire like the others did because my job was to make sure the hoses had plenty of water and to keep an out on them and for anything unusual.

So he really didn't need to worry about me. He sighed with relief and said a sweet "Shew" after I told him that. I asked him how the turtle family was doing and he said "Fine and they all say hello." Silently, I really enjoyed this child's imagination. When we first met Cody, he didn't have that. Chad never ceased to amaze me, especially a child that had no family.

New Horizons really did do a great job showing him love and concern. I asked him if he and Cody were "on guard" today and he giggled and said "We do that every day!" I asked him who won and he said "Well, I'd say Cody did. But it was still fun." I told him I imagined it was. I told him I had to go and he was fine with it. He asked if I was going to come see him the next day and I told him I was, probably in the evening.

He was happy and I bid him a fond goodnight. After I hung up, I stood still for a few minutes, deep in thought, easily seeing another addition to our family. Cap came strolling through the kitchen and he seen me deep in thought and asked me if I was OK and I told him I was; I was just having a moment and I would be fine. So he let it go at that. I walked over to the couch and sat down.

Roy came over and asked how Chad was doing. I told him was doing good. Roy said he could tell I was touched by something as he sat down next to me and I told him I was amazed with Chad's sweet imagination. Roy said kids at his age were good for that and I agreed and paralleled Cody's shyness with Chad's bubbly personality at first and how different they were.

Same facility; very different circumstances. I told Roy about Julie's theory about Cody going into his shell again after we bring Chad home. Roy gave it some thought and said "You know what? I highly doubt it because Cody did say at the time he worked through his fears with Luka's arrival that he was secure in the knowledge that he was loved and always would be."

I told Roy that same thought crossed my mind as well and this was something Cody initiated. I told him that Julie and I were going to talk to Cody and get an idea of where he is at with it. Roy thought it was a very good idea. I told him we had to start somewhere.

Cap then stuck his head into the kitchen and told us the lights would be out in fifteen minutes so Roy and I headed for the dorm to change into our night gear.

As I was changing into my night gear, the phone rang and Cap answered it and told him it was Julie. So I took it in the kitchen. I was glad to hear her voice. She asked me how things were going and I told her we were busy off and on, Roy and I had a good talk and Chad called me. She was surprised Chad called and I told her I tried to put his mind at ease as much as possible because he was worried about me being a firefighter.

Julie thought it was sweet of him to worry and she said more and more we were bonding and I agreed with her. She asked if I was going to see him the next day and I told I was and that I wanted her to go with me. She liked that idea but didn't like leaving the boys alone. I told her we could leave Bret in charge being that the was going on twelve and give him a little more responsibility.

She agreed but not without laying down the law first and I said "Of course. First things first though. Talking to Cody and establishing reasonable ground rules while Bret was in charge. I bid her a fond goodnight and blew her a kiss through the phone and put the phone down gently.

I went back to the dorm, got into my bunk quietly and it didn't take long for me to fall sound asleep.

To Be Continued


End file.
